Machine for lasting the toe portion of uppers in the manufacture of shoes



, Nov, 25, 1941; I J. I-VIOZA 2,263,699

MACHINE FOR LASTING THE TOE PORTION OF UPPERS IN THE MANUFACTURE OFSHOES Filed April 20, 1940 O s Sheets-Sheet 1 'FIG. 1.

Nov. zs, 1941. Y J, HQZA I 2,263,699

MACHINE FOR LASTING THE TOE PORTION OF UPPERS IN THE MANUFACTURE OFSHOES Filed April 20, 1940 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 W 426, 'Muffm w Nov. 251941., 2,263,699 MACHINE FOR LASTING THE TOE PORTION OF UPPERS IN THEMANUFACTURE OF SHOES J. HOZAY 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed April 20, 1940Patented Nov. 25, 1941 MACHINE FOR LASTING THE TOE PORTION OF UPPERS INTHE MANUFACTURE OF SHOES John Hoza, Belcamp, Md.

Application April 20, 1940, Serial No. 330,780 In CzechoslovakiaNovember 2, 1938 12 Claims. (CI. 12-14) This machine relates to amachine for automatically lasting the toe portion of uppers bypulling-over the toe portion, drawing it tight, forming it to the lastand attaching it to the insole in the manufacture of boots, shoes andother like articles of footwear (hereinafter and in the claims referredto as shoes).

An object of the invention is to provide mechanism for correctly formingthe toe portion .of shoe uppers throughout the whole of its extent inthe manufacture of shoes of diiferent sizes.

Another object is to smooth out the effects of unequal forces, ornon-uniformities, in the material of the toe portion to be attached.

Another object is to ensure that, in the wiping action applied to themargin of the toe portion, i. e. the lasted edge, the wipers closesimultaneously on the entire margin to be attached.

Another object is to spread or distribute the material of the toeportion in a smoothly uniform manner.

Another object is to make provision whereby the hammers, which insertthe fasteners to attach the toe portion to the insole, act directly andnot through special top slides to reduce their stroke.

Another object is to make it practicable to use fasteners whose lengthis the same as the thickness of the materials to be attached.

Further objects of the invention will be apparent from the followingdescription and claims.

A machine for lasting the toe portion of shoe uppers will now bedescribed by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings,in which:

Fig. 1 is an elevation of the entire machine.

Fig. 2 is a sectional elevation of the toe-forming device in operativeposition.

Fig. 3 is a sectional plan illustrating forming cheeks of said device.

Fig. 4 is a sectional plan illustrating a wiper device in its normal, orinoperative, position.

Fig. 5 is a section of the line II--II of Fig. 4 illustrating theattaching device for driving fasteners into the materials to beattached.

Fig. 6 is a detail view illustrating an operating mechanism for thepresser arm.

The machine comprises mainly the toe-forming device, the wiper deviceand the attaching device.

The .device for forming on the last K (see Figs. 1, 2 and 3) the toeportion of the leather upper is arranged at the end of a presser arm Iwhich serves as a carrier for said device and associated parts. Thedevice includes forming cheeks 2 abutting against one another forlateral pivotal movement about the point A of contact. These cheeks areguided in their movement by arcuate tracks 3, the centre of arcuity ofthese tracks being the point A. Lugs 4 extending from the checks 2areurged apart by a spring 5 on a pin 6 passing through both of saidlugs. The spring 5 acts on the cheeks to form the material at the toe ofthe upper smoothly and accurately by a Wiping action in conformity withthe last, the cheeks being adaptable for the manufacture of shoes ofdifferent sizes. I

Non-rotatable adjustment nuts 1, 8 screwed on the pin 6 serve to limitthe extent of separation of the lugs 4 or the clamping action of thecheeks, according to the style of the shoe. Adjustment of these nuts iseifectedby a finger knob 9 on the pin 6.

The centre A about which the cheeks 2 turn is adjustable with referenceto the point of the toe portion. Adjustment is effected by means of adove-tail guide I0 which forms a connection between the cheeks and theirpivotal supporting bracket and which is controlled by an adjustmentscrew II.

The working parts of the toe-forming device are all carried by theaforesaid pivotal supporting bracket, which is pivotally attached by apin I2 to the arm I, the bracket and parts carried thereby beingdepressed by a spring I3 on a setscrew I 4. This screw I4 serves mainlyin connection with displacement of the toe-forming device, the range ofdisplacement thereof at the centre A being denoted by a: in Fig. 2.

There is also provided at the end of the presser arm I an adjustablepresser I5 which is formed as the holder of a pad or cushion I6. Thispresser is mounted in aguideway at the end of the arm I, being depressedby a spring Il on an adjustment screw I8. The spring I'I, acting throughthe cushion I6, serves to smooth out non-uniformities in the material ofthe toe portion.

The presser arm I is pivotally attached by a pivot pin I9 to the frameof the machine and is operatively connected by a link 26 with operatingmechanism which may be of any appropriate and well known design, such asshown for example in Figure 62 of the patent to Pym, 2,039,448. Asuitable operating mechanism is shown for illustrative purposes in Fig.6, in which A is an actuating cam for the bell crank B pivotally mountedat C and coupled with the link 2|] by means of a cushioned and slidableconnecting means D. The particular design of the is provided..Thisdevice includes a guide blockor unit 2| which is rearwardly movableon the frame. At the front of the block 2|, wiper elements 22, 23 withnail-receiving holes are mount-- ed, these elements being laterallypivotable about the centre B (Fig. 4) under the-guidance -of arcuatetracks 24. The elements22, 2'3 are formed peripherally with teeth 25which mesh with small toothed pinions toothed racks 21. Each of theracks 21 is con- 26 meshing also".'with= ing arranged opposite at b andon the machine axis at a. These pincers may be of any suitable design,similar, for example, to those shown in the patent to Pym, 2,039,448, orin the patent to McFeely, 663,777, or in applicants copendingapplication, 330,778, filed April 20, 1940. The pincers are movable upand-down-and serve to seize and draw out 'the toe-portion"- material tobe formed and attached. Within the pincer assembly-the previouslymentioned support for the last is arranged. In this support there is ahollow shaft wherei n is arranged the guide pin or shaft ofthe-previously mentioned press table, which acts upwardly under pressureon the guide plates 33 ferinsertion of the nails H. The heel end of Ithe last is supported by another support on the nected by a pin 28 to arod 29 which is g'uided 'fo'r movement in the machine frame." "In "the'for-' ward movement of the block 2 I, that is movement away from themachine and towards the lasted upper; the rod 29 moves with theblock'until-said" rod abuts-against a stop '30, which-is borne by a pin3| on an adjustable-lever 32 (Fig? 1) When abutmentoccurs; the 'racks 2!'come to restyso that continuationof the blocksforward move ment resultsin 'rotationof the pinions26. Thus;

the wiper-elements 22, 23 and the wiper =shears close towards oneanother. This closing motion takes placeas the centre-B approaches thepoint C at the toe point (Fig. 4). The "distance fromthe centreB to thepoint C, in the normalor inoperative position of the block,correspondsto the distance-between the abutting portion'of the rod 29 and the stop30. --'Thus, during the continued forward movement of the blocki'l, theclosing wiper elements 22, 23 cause the toe portion' material which isto'be marginally attached to be uniformly inwiped throughout itsentirety to the extent of the attach-mentdistance D.

After the wiping action of the elements 22, 23

onthe toeportion'of the shoe upper, and'sub sequent attachmentthereof tothe soleythe block 2| is withdrawnrearwards. In thewithdrawal of theblock, a shoulder-onthe rack?! moves-- against a stop 33 which isattached by ajscrew 34 to the frame of the machine; This stop'actstoreopenthe elements 22,23 during'the remainder of the'returnof the block.The stop 33 must be so adjusted on the frame?that,"when the return ofthe blockis completed, the'inner faces of the" elements-12,23 are closedagainst one another" along the axis I I, which is the longitudinal axisof the machine."-

An attaching=device is mounted on,for 'upand-down movement in relation"to, the wiping tend-into guides in the plates22, 23, said guidesserving also "to receive fasteners in the form'of tacks'H. In view ofnon-uniformities in the upper material to be pinched up, the hammers areadjustable in height by -meansof adjustment screws '38. The hammersare'acted upon by springs39 to biasthem toward retracted'posi tion.Theguide plates 36 also are acteduponby springs 40 to bias them towardretracted'position on the pins 35. .A press tableisprovidedin'association with asupport for'the'toeend of the last K toforcetheplates'iwfi upwards against the yielding resistance of thespringsdll.

A pincer or gripper assembly-isprovidedon the base plate ofthe-"machine; oneunit thereof being' base plate of the machine.

The operation 'of the machine is as follows: with the material placedupon and drawn over the last, the presser arm I swings downwards, withthe result that the centre-A of the toe-forming cheeks-2 comes closeagainst the upper mate rial and in the consequentialpivotal movement(within-the limits at, Fig. 2) of the toe-forming Y device about the pin12, the forming cheeks slide closely along the-formof the" last anddownward 1y as far as the plane of the hammering action onthe shoefseeFig. 2). -As shown,-- themargin'O of the shoe upper projects frombelowthe forming cheeksz Thusthe' cheeks spread themselvessmoothly-overthe toe portion of the upper. -Simultaneously; the pressercushi0n"l6 becomes rmly seated uponthe-last:

After the'endpf the downward movement of the presser arm; the block 2|slides f'orwardsin the toe-to-heel direction;The rnargin 0projectingfrom below thecheeks-2 "is thus operated uponby thewipers-,=which*are forced to 'pivot' towards one anotherl Then themargin 0 is attached-by the actionof the press table in rising againstthe hammer guide plate 35. H, which are' fille'd-into the holes in theelements 22, 23 and which stand close against the material to beattached, are-driven in thisinanner' into the material; 'After the'attachment operation, all the parts return to their original position;in

which the holes in the wiper elements are again filled with tacks forthe next shoe, and the cycle of operations is-repeated-.----

I claim:

1. A machine"for"formin'g thetoe portion of shoe 4 uppers; such machinecomprising 'a' frame,

a supporting means on "said'frame fora'last, an arm'pivotally mounted onsaid frameand adapt "ed to be mechanically lowered and raised to andfrom' an upper "on a last I *on' said supporting means; 'atoe-formingdevice pivotally attached to said arm for engagement-withthe'toe'portion of the upper and having spring meansyiel'dingly resistingpivotal movement of 'said"'device'-'whenforced by lowering of said armtoengagethe toe portion, said device comprising toe-p'ortion en gagingcheeks contactingone another at a point and 'pivotable to and from oneanotherabout said pointymeansarcuate' about said point for guiding said"checks in their pivotal I movement,

spring means urgingsaid-cheeks'to pivot'towards oneanother and screwa'djus'tment means limiting the pivotal movement of said cheeks towardsone another.

2. A machine as claimed-in claim l, character ized--=by apivotalbracket-whereon-the arcu'atecheek guiding means is provided}said-bracket v being-a"component-of the'toe forming device, a guide"connection between -said bracket and a The tacks cheek-guiding means, ascrew adjustment for adjusting said cheek-guiding. means along saidconnectionto-and-from a last on the supporting tion of a shoe-upperonalast on the support a holder on which said cushion is provided, aguideway on the arm for said cushion holder and adjustable spring meansdepressing said holder so that the cushion will bear on and smooth outnon-uniformities from the toe-portion when the arm is lowered.

4. A machine for forming the toe portion of shoe uppers, such machinecomprising a frame, a supporting means on said frame for a last, an armpivotally mounted on said frame and adapted to be mechanically loweredand raised to and from an upper on a last on said supporting means, atoe-forming device including toe-portion-spreading cheeks and attachedto said arm for engagement of said cheeks with the toe portion of theupper, and means to engage the margin of the spread toe portion forattachment of the margin to the shoe insole, said engaging meanscomprising a block guided on said frame for movement to-and-from the toeportion, wipers mounted on said block to pivot to-and-from one anotherabout a point of contact, means arcuate about said point for guidingsaid wipers in their pivotal movement, rack-and-pinion mechanismactuated by said block during an extent of the movement thereof,adjustable abutment devices for transmitting movement from said block tosaid mechanism, and connections between said mechanism and said wipersfor pivoting them in engagement with the entire margin of the spread toeportion to be attached.

5. A machine as claimed in claim 4 including also attachment means forattaching the toe portion of a shoe upper to the insole by fasteners,said attachment means comprising guide plates respectively mounted belowthe wipers for upward movement under pressure, spring means yieldinglyresisting upward movement of said guide plates, fastener-receivingguides in the wipers, hammers mounted in said guide plates and enteringsaid guides to support fasteners inserted therein, and screw devices foradjusting the mounting of said hammers in said guide plates, thearrangement being such that upward movement of said guide plates forcesthe hammers to drive the fasteners from the guides into the toe portionand insole.

6. A machine for forming the toe portion of shoe uppers, such machinecomprising a frame, a supporting means on said frame for a last. a

carrier mounted on said frame and adapted tobe mechanically moved to andfrom an upper on a last on said supporting means, a toe-forming deviceattached to said carrier for engagement with the toe portion of theupper and having spring means yieldingly resisting movement of saiddevice when forced by said carrier to engage the toe portion, saiddevice comprising toe-portion-engaging cheeks pivotable away from oneanother by engagement with the toe portion to spread themselvessmoothingly thereover, and spring means urging said cheeks to pivottowards one another.

7. A machine for forming the toe portion of shoe uppers, such machinecomprising a frame, a supporting means on said frame for a last. a

carrier mounted on said frame for movement to and from an upper onalaston said supporting means, and a toe-forming device attached to saidcarrier for yieldingly resistantengagement with the toe portion of theupper; in the movement of said carrier, said device comprisingtoe-portionengaging cheeks pivotable away from one another by engagementwith the toe portion to spread themselves smoothingly thereover andmeans yieldingly urging said-cheeks to, pivot towards one another. V l

8. ll. machine forforming the toe portion of shoe uppers, such machinecomprising a frame, a supporting means on said frame for a last, acarrier mounted on said frame for movement to and from an upper on alast on said supporting means, and a toe-forming device attached to saidcarrier for yieldingly resistant engagement with the toe portion of theupper in the movement of said carrier, said device comprising a bracketpivotally mounted on said carrier, a guide element connected to saidbracket and adjustable relatively thereto in the direction to-and-fromthe last on said supporting means, toe-portionengaging cheeks arcuatelyguided by said guide element and pivotable away from one another byengagement with the toe portion to spread themselves smoothinglythereover, and means yieldingly urging said cheeks to pivot towards oneanother.

9. A machine for forming the toe portion of shoe uppers, such machinecomprising a frame, a supporting means on said frame for a last. acarrier mounted on said frame for movement to and from an upper on alast on said supporting means, a cushion holder mounted on said carrier,spring means pressing said holder yieldingly towards the toe portion ofthe upper, a cushion on said holder to engage the toe portion, and atoe-forming device attached to said carrierfor yieldingly resistantengagement with the toe portion concomitantly with said cushion-in themovement of said carrier, said device comprising toe-portion-engagingcheeks pivotable away from one another by engagement with the toeportion to spread themselves smoothingly thereover, and means yieldinglyurging said cheeks to pivot towards one another.

10. A machine for forming the toe portion of shoe uppers, such machinecomprising a frame, a supporting means on said frame for a last. acarrier mounted on said frame for movement to and from an upper on alast on said supporting means, a toe-forming device attached to saidcarrier for engagement with the toe portion of the upper in the movementof said carrier, said device comprising toe-portion-engaging cheekspivotable with yielding resistance away from one another by engagementwith the toe portion to spread themselves smoothingly thereover, andmeans to engage the margin of the smoothly spread toe portion forattachment of the margin to the shoe insole, said engaging meanscomprising an assembly guided on said frame for' movement to-and-fromthe toe portion, marginengaging wipers mounted on said block to pivotto-and-from one another, and mechanism actuated by said unit in themovement thereof to pivot said wipers to and from one another.

11. -A. machine as claimed in claim 10 include ing also attachment meansfor attaching the toe portion of a shoe upper to the insole byfasteners, said attachment means comprising guide plates respectivelyconnected to the wipers for yieldingly resistant movement under pressuretowards the carrier i for engagemenhwith thefo'boiti'olnigfguidefilaitsjespeetive'ly connected to the wipe'l s tosupiio'rf'fas'terirs inserted therein.

JOHN I-IOZAQ

